A week in the life of a 3rd-Year Music student varies greatly from semester to semester, and from person to person. This variety is one of my favourite things about studying Music at York, as it never gets boring! This blog is a little look into what my ‘typical’ week looks like!
Monday
Mondays are usually my quietest day of the week. I rarely have commitments in the morning, so I like to spend this time to do any errands, housework or admin for the week (I get sent a lot of emails on Mondays!). In the afternoon, I generally schedule in some online tutoring.
Every fortnight, I’ll have a supervision for my solo project. This is a large-scale project which you undertake in your final year. It can be pretty much whatever you want it to be! I’m writing and producing an original musical. Others I know are doing all kinds of different things, from dissertations, to performances, to analysis projects.
This is a highlight of the Music programme at York. You spend most of your time doing something you really want to do. In the evenings, I have composer’s gamelan (a set of mostly percussion instruments from Indonesia), which is a really great opportunity to play and realise new compositions from other students, or have some of your own ideas played with and developed.
Tuesday
For the first half of term, I have seminars in the morning. These consist of two 90-minute sessions (with a half-hour break in between) of a module chosen from a list of options, which cover a wide range of areas.
This term, I elected to take a module called ‘Instrumental Music Education’. I really enjoyed this module, as it was a good mixture of theory and practical work. For example, we would have a theory session on ‘teaching improvisation’, then we would split into pairs, and practise teaching each other using the techniques from the sessions. This was both good fun, and a great way to practise new teaching techniques in a low-pressure environment. After seminars are finished, I generally go home, do some more tutoring, and then have a free evening!
Wednesday
Wednesday is probably the most versatile of my days. For the first half of term, I had a compulsory module called ‘Developing Professionalism’. This aims to give final-year students an indication of how to go about looking for employment, or applying for postgraduate study.
After this, I’d have a rehearsal for the consort of viols, which is a collection of early string instruments. I had very little string experience before I started playing with the consort, but there are different groups that you can participate in, depending on how much time and experience you have. I’ve elected to be in a casual group, and it’s been a great way for me to learn a new instrument, and a little more about a musical period which I’d previously had little exposure to.
In the evenings, I often go to the weekly concert. Music students get free tickets, and performances include everything from piano trios, to student ensembles, to a cappella groups. My personal favourite this term was a concert given by The Swingles. Music students were also invited to a meet and greet afterwards, which made for a very exciting evening!
Thursday
Every other week, on a Thursday, I have my individual singing lesson. This, to me, is one of the most valuable parts of the course, as it gives dedicated time towards focusing on performance goals, including technique and repertoire.
Thursday evenings are also my most ensemble-heavy day. I start off with community gamelan, which is a casual group made up of current and past students, and members of the local community. The purpose being to explore elements of traditional gamelan music in a very relaxed environment. After this, I attend a group kendhang lesson. This is one of the instruments in the gamelan, and is a key part of guiding the group through the tempo changes in a piece.
Friday
In the morning, I have another set of seminars, identical to the structure of Tuesday morning. Then I’ll generally stay around to catch up with friends before an afternoon gamelan rehearsal. Following this, I’ll do some work before evening rehearsals for my solo project!
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